Street Magician
by Bthedancer14
Summary: After the Four Horsemen initiate into the Eye, they make it their priority to recruit more magicians. One of them happen to be Ruth, a homeless mute girl with a strange telepathic talent. After showing them her power, she's in. For the first time, she's experiencing wealth, power, and adventure. But will fame and fortune destroy the humble street magician she was in the beginning?
1. Chapter 1

**Wassup! I just saw the new movie "Now You See Me" and loved it! Recommend it highly! Now, when I came on her, I was curious to know what were the Fanfictions about it! Only 14, an most of them are one shot. Well, I'm here to give you guys something more. Please read and review!**

Chapter 1

I opened my eyes to the harsh sunlight of the day. Being a homeless magician was no piece of cake. It was filled with danger and poverty. Ever since my parents kicked me out last year, I had been forced to live on her only talent: magic. I don't know when it came to me. Maybe it happened when I saw another street magician performing in time square. Ever since then, I had practiced and I wasn't too bad. I had some strange ability to move objects with my mind. But I was also a street dancer. Whenever I could, I would practice my routines and perform them. I only wished that people would see and actually WATCH me. The most attention I have received was a pimp wanting to recruit me. Many times a night, I would sob, begging someone to see me on the outskirts with only a blanket and myself. Why was I being punished like this? Was there no one their for me? Well, it's time. I got up and got my boombox ready. Finding a plug, I put her CD in and pressed play. _Dub step Violin _came on and I performed. People walked all around me but didn't see me. Moving along with the music, I saw newspapers laying all around her. I had an idea; while I danced to the climax, newspapers moved and flowed with the wind. A teen girl saw and came closer. Desperately, she lifted leaves and made it rain. Soon, I was gathering more and more attention from the crowd. There were women, men, teens, and children. Smiling, I put it up an notch. I had never tried this. Closing my eyes and dancing, I felt myself leave the ground and float up into the hair. The crowd screamed with excitement. I was only more encouraged. Soon, the song ended and endless more came up. Eventually the crowd dispersed, but it didn't matter to me. Her tin cup was filled with cash. By the time, I reached down to the ground, only four people remained. One was the clear leader. He had sharp brown eyes and a slight stubble. He was holding a red head woman with warm blue eyes. A man stood to the side; he was obviously the oldest. Balding, he sported a fedora. Then, there was a teen guy with a pack of cards in his hands. The leader approached her with a smile. I frowned. It was common to get visits from rivaling magicians and dancers. Why was this happening now? This was the first time I had ever received money. "Hi, I'm Daniel Atlas. This is Henley" gesturing to the woman. "And these two idiots are Merritt and Jack." The two guys nodded respectively. "Jack here has been watching you since this morning. He seems to think that you have some potential. I wasn't so sure. Why don't you 'sample' some of your abilities for us?" I smiled. They weren't threatening. Maybe they were only curious. I gestured to the pack of cards Jack was holding. He threw them to me. It was ease fell into my hands. Putting another CD in, _Ho Hey! _played and I danced again with the cards. Keeping my eye contact with the leader, I made the cards float around. And I flew around as well. When the song ended, the guy just yawned. "That's all you got. Well, that's actually kinda disappointing. I was expecting something more...useful. Let's go. Sorry we wasted your time." With that, he turned around. The others gave me apologetic looks. The woman tried to speak to him, but he wouldn't listen. In anger, I could only think that my chance for something just went out. How could he be so heartless? Did he even care? In my frustration, I banged my fist against the pavement. To my surprise, I felt no pain. Instead, I made...a crack on the rock hard ground. I had no idea to how I accomplished that. Intrigued, I willed the ground to shake. It obeyed. Smiling, I turned to the abandoned building behind me. With all my energy, I punched the wall. It did the trick well...but too well. A whole wall of brick started to pile in me. In fear I closed my eyes and begged the wall and ground to go to normal. When I felt no impact, I opened my eyes and saw that it was back to normal. Then, I heard a clapping noise right behind me, the noise that would change my life forever. "Wow...that was incredible. I've never seen anything like that. THAT'S what we want to see. No controlled dancing. That's cute and everything, but that was amazing. What's your name?" I tried to answer but my mutism prevented that. I had been born mute. I had learned sign language, but I doubted that they knew how to communicate. So I tried to speak, with no success. I kept making these strange sounds and I cried. The quartet kept giving me strange looks. I saw a piece of paper nearby. I gestured a pencil movement. The guy came in front of me and sat. He handed me a pencil. Eagerly, I grabbed it and wrote down. He lifted the paper and said,

"You're Ruth McCalister?" I nodded with joy. I had just made a new name for myself. No one would know my true identity.

* * *

Ruth stared at me with wonder and joy. I had seen the girl early this morning. At first I thought she was pole dancing. But as I looked more into it, she was dancing and moving random objects all around herself. At one point, she started flying around. I laughed with amazement. This chick was amazing! I signaled to Daniel; he was always on our asses, telling us to let him know whether we find any raw talent. She fit the bill. This girl was so beautiful...when you looked up close. Otherwise, she looks like a poor dirty chick. She also can't speak. I nearly cried listening to her try to communicate. I handed her a pencil and she played along. I can see great things happening to her in the future.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi! Wow, what a positive response! Thank you all that were intrigued by my story: aftereverything, BooksFans101, AvalonXNaruto, Just a random fairy, Firesidegirl62, Lost in The Arts, angel'slittledemon, xxX AJO xXx, AmberJeanie, Savysnape7, Altogirl1099, zarulett0599, and Soren Quill! I hope that this won't disappoint you!**

Chapter 2

After living in a box for a year, The Four Horsemen take me in and introduce me into the world of the Eye. But before I can be initiated, they have to make sure I'm talented enough to be a Horseman. So they prepare an act with me. I'm amazed at the abilities of my fellow magicians. Merritt is a mentalist. After he looked at me, he had already guessed that I was seventeen, I had been born with mutism, and something else...Something very private. He wrote down on a piece of paper what it was and I nodded. I'm now at his mercy; if I even screw up once, I can get kicked out immediately.

"Hey, Ruthie! Pay attention! It's the success of this show that determines your living situation." I nodded slowly and pay attention. What we were going to do is create the illusion of a hurricane in the theater. For once, everyone's depended on me to make the show.. I'm the act. We practiced for a week; to my dismay, what I had to do was way beyond my control. "What do you mean you can't do it?" I fearfully shrugged. I figured out that Daniel was very paranoid, neurotic, and bossy. Whenever I mess up just a tiny bit, it takes the efforts of Henley to calm him down. "You need to do this otherwise you're out. You hear me? OUT!" He slammed his fist down on the table. Now, that crossed the line. I wasn't their slave. As soon as he stopped talking, the atmosphere changed. Small objects started shaking. Merritt started giving Daniel looks. Daniel gave me a look and yelled, "YEAH! Show me what the hell you can do, BITCH!" With that, he was slammed across the room against the wall. When he tried to get up, I threw up and threw him against the ground. I would have kept going if Jack hadn't touched me. He didn't even have to say anything. I understood. Enough was enough. He was able to stand up. The first person he looked at was me. He opened his mouth to probably provoke me again, but Henley walked up right to him and slapped him hard. She spoke in my defense.

"Daniel, you got what you deserved. You can't do that! There's something called respect. You better respect her; we bring her out of the streets and we bring here. You can't just threaten to throw her away like a broken toy. If you can't do that, just walk away." With a scowl, he turned around and walked away. All this time, I had been crying silently. I didn't mean to hurt him. Henley came to me. I prepared myself for the third degree, but instead, she hugged me. "I'm sorry that he said that. That was outta line. Anyway, if you can't do it, just wing it. Okay?" I nodded.

Now, Merritt steers clear of me; Henley's been trying to calm Daniel down. The only one who I hang out with is Jack. We can have conversations about basically everything. I always carry around a piece of paper and pencil to ensure communication. Today, we were talking about our childhood. I learned many things about Jack.

"You know, I was an orphan. My family died in a car accident. I was twelve. I was put in the foster system for a year; I ran away when I was thirteen. That's when I became a street magician. I started out with card tricks, then I started to pick-pocket. I mixed it both together. But...Here I am. I'm twenty years old, but I've got nothing to offer. I was stupid. I ran with the wrong crowd and made stupid decisions. But when I met Atlas...Life changed." After a brief silence, he asked, "What happened to you?" I stayed still for a second; should I tell him? Finally, I picked up my pencil and I wrote,

_"Stories are meant to be told at a certain time. This is not one of them." _He stayed silent. I looked at him with awe. Tears came to my eyes; I closed them. When I opened them, his face was inches away from my face. I could feel his breath against my face. Before he could get any closer, Merritt appears.

"Hey, mute girl! It's time. Don't screw up." It was time.

* * *

Ruth and I walked together into the club. She was wearing a hipster outfit: long black skinny jeans with a green sports bra with a long black coat. Plus, she wore black Converse. My hand accidentally brushed against hers. She looked at me and smiled. I gazed upon her with awe. I was about to say something when Daniel whistled at us.

"Oy! We need to get into the position. Let's go. Ruthie, disappear." My partner nodded and then she blended in the crowd. What she needed to do was lift the stage and spin it a bit. I have no idea what he was thinking. Ruth needed more practice; she wouldn't be able to pull this off. When I ran to the others, I heard Daniel talking to Henley. "I can't wait to see this chick screw up."

"What do you mean?''

"Come on, Henley! You honestly think we were gonna let her in, after the stunt she pulled earlier. I didn't want to say it up front, but I know she's not gonna make it. She's gonna flake and we'll kick her out." I had to speak.

"You're kidding? What kind of sick joke is this?"

"Jack! Shit! Look, this is a group decision. Just keep quiet and stick to the plan."

"Um, no! I'm not gonna watch you humiliate this girl; do you understand anything?" Before he could reply, the lights started to dim. The show began.

* * *

The spot lights came on and my cue came on.

"Welcome to the show! I'm J. Daniel Atlas, this is Henley Reeves. Jack Wilder's here and here's our Mentalist: Merritt. And we are the" all together they yelled, "THE FOUR HORSEMEN!"

"Tonight, we have a very special show. But before we can begin, can I just say it's a little hot in here?" On cue, the wind became charged and more intense. Our hair was swept into the wind and we could feel the ground shaking. I closed my eyes waiting for the girl to screw up. After a minute of nothing, I smiled. Then we heard a scream from up above.

"HELP ME!" She was ... floating in the air. But how? Then the ground began to shake even harder. Henley looked scared, while Merritt looked bewildered. Jack only looked at the sky and grinned. He yelled at me (something I could only hear)

"SO MUCH FOR SCREWING UP!" Ruthie emerged from the sky; she was flying. Then she slowly raised her arms. The club slowly started to rise from the concrete and the group floated as well. I was too dumbstruck; but she wasn't done. With one movement of her wrist, the club started to spin. People started to scream in glee and adrenaline. Since I couldn't say anything, Henley decided to walk up and say the rehearsed lines,

"We Present Ruth, the Fifth Horseman! Ladies and Gentlemen, let's give a round of applause!" The crowd gleefully obeyed. Ruth smiled and the building was put back down. The audience was also released. Ruthie, the mute girl, had finally gained my respect. Welcome, Ruth. Welcome.

**Hi! Sorry for being so slow. Had family coming over and I wanted to this to be GREAT! So I kept proofreading and stuff. I hope y'all like it! Please Read and Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you all for your reviews and follows! That's what keeps this story going. I hope you like this; please read and review!

Reflections are kinda funny, if you look at it. It shows exactly what you look like, but it doesn't show what you are like inside. For example, if you saw me in the mirror, you would have never thought that I was mute or in a gang. But I was. Richard was the one who brought me into it. I had always been careful about gangs, but he charmed me. I soon became a part of the Leopards. I hid it pretty well; I was so happy. For once, someone actually showed an interest in me! But I saw his ugly side when he slapped me. When I went to my family for help, they responded by kicking me out. Makes sense, huh? Soon, I decided that I wanted out; that was a fight that almost cost me my own life.

"Hey, Ruth, come on down. Breakfast is ready." I smiled as I heard Henley's motherly voice. I promptly ran out of my room and sprinted to the kitchen. She was cooking an omelet, while Daniel was reading a newspaper. I tentatively sat down next to him.

"So Ruthie, are you up for it?" I took out my piece of paper and pencil and wrote, _Up for what?_ "For the newest job. We're waiting for the boss to give us our new assignment. Plus, we MAY need to introduce you to him. Where the hell is Jack?" Right on cue, Jack bursts through the door looking flushed. I ran to him and tried to calm him down. "J, what happened?"

"I ran into the Leopards on 25th Kings. I was only looking for some money; I guess they know all the tricks in the book." Then he rolled up his sleeve and showed us a burn mark. Tears streamed down my face; it was the initiation mark. I raised my hand to wipe the tears off; my sweater rose up and my mark could be seen. Jack's eyes traced to my hip but I quickly pulled it down. He gave me a questioning look, but luckily no one else noticed. "They found me and they tried to initiate me. I got out of there before they can burn my tongue."

"Jack, you need to be WAY more careful. One wrong move and you could have died. Now, where's Merritt?" Jack shrugged. Instead of speaking to our leader, he leaned into my ear and whispered,

"We will talk later, okay?" His voice made my voice shiver with anticipation. I nodded; then I went to help Henley. She smiled when she saw me.

"Do you know who to cook?" I was okay; I mean I could make a mean peanut butter jelly sandwich. She showed me a recipe to follow. "I'll go check on Jack. Tell us if you see Merritt." Then she left.

000

I was playing with a ball in my room when Jack came in. I didn't even notice him at first; I was only aware of his presence when he closed the door. Fearing the worst, I spun around and breathed with relief. Playfully, I shoved him into the bed. He laughed; then he saw the mark again. But this time, before I could hide it again, his hand held it. I swear, my heart was beating so hard that it hurt. He took off my sweater and I felt super self-conscious because I was wearing a skimpy camisole underneath. He lifted up the cami and looked at the burn. Then he said,

"What happened to you?" Crying, I pointed to his burn mark. "So, you were in the Leopards? Why would you do that?" Now, he knew where to hit the belt. I was sobbing now. All of those painful memories came back to me. "What happened to you?" Finally, I decided to tell him everything. Here goes.

000

After reading all that she wrote, I couldn't look at her. It wasn't that I was mad at her. If anything, all I wanted to do was hold her and comfort her. Ruthie wasn't …Ruthie. She was Ileana. Her parents were anti-gang people, but she was seduced by Richard. Richard was the bastard who gave me this mark. She was initiated into the gang and she was happy. But after her boyfriend tried raping her, she tried to run to her family for help. Enraged that she was the enemy, they kicked her out with no mercy. That's when she tried to get out of it. In return for leaving, they…burned her tongue. That's why she couldn't speak. She showed me the burns and I understood. She was lucky for being able to keep her life. That's why she was on the streets. She held my hand and looked at me with begging eyes. When I didn't respond, she stood up to leave. But I grasped her hand and pulled her towards me. She just looked surprised. Then I took a leap of faith and kissed her softly on the lips. She at first didn't comply, but she soon quickly picked it up again. I heard the door lock quickly and the curtains close. She was running her hands through my hair and my hands were on her hips, pressing them against my own. I heard Daniel and Henley calling us, but we didn't answer. We didn't answer for a while.

000

What are those kids doing up there? Oh, whatever. Henley just sat next to me and smiled. I guess it would just be the two of us listening to Rhodes' orders. The door opened and the ex-police officer walked in. Smiling, he said,

"Hey, Daniel and Henley. Where's Merritt and Jack?"

"Jack's upstairs with your newest recruit. Her name's Ruthie. Mute girl but she's got this ability. I think you'd like her. And Merritt…Who the hell knows where he is?" I finished talking. The stairs made a sound and we all turned around to see the couple. Ruthie's hair looked like a haystack and her clothes were ruffled. Jack's face was flushed. Jack saw Rhodes and froze.

"Oh, shit. Daniel, why didn't you call us when he got here?"

"I called you to prepare over two hours ago. You decided not to listen. I guess I can assume that you were busy with Ruthie."

"Daniel, its Ileana." Ruthie spun around and slapped him to the ground. She was making strange hand motions, but you could tell that she was pissed. "Everyone needs to know. We won't kick you out! You are already in." The girl took out her tablet and started writing furiously on it. The door also kept opening and shutting. Repeatedly. When she was finally finished, she showed him the tablet.

_I can't believe that you told them that. That was my PERSONAL business. Ileana is dead. She died. How could you? Secrets are secrets. _

"What are you talking about, Ruth?" Our conversation was ended when a whole gang invaded the house. Smoke filled the room and we couldn't see each other. All we could hear was Jack calling for Ruthie or Ileana. When the smoke cleared, Ileana was gone.

**Well, I wanted to put a little bit of Ruth's or Ileana's past in here. I hope you guys like it! Please Read and Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi! It's been a while, I know. But I've gotten involved in so much stuff, so…that's it. Thank you, Xxdreamergirl95xX for your review. I hope you like this! Read and Review!**

Chapter 4

I woke up tied to a chair. My neck hurt and I had definitely been beaten. My arms were covered with bruises.

"So, Ileana, you go by Ruth now." My blood curdled when I heard that voice. Richard. To my horror, the tall, blond guy appeared in front of me. He had a white tank top that barely concealed his muscles. Richard had grown up with me in the ghetto; he protected me from the gang leaders until we were twelve. That's the year when he joined the Leopards. I was so heartbroken when he found a new girl. But things changed. He tracked me down and actually saved me from a gang rape. He said that we could be together, if I joined the gang. Despite the pain, I thought it was worth it. Only until he tried to violate me. We had just come from a dance party and we were in his crappy apartment. You can guess what happened. He was at first sweet, and then he turned extremely aggressive. I had to run; my parents were the only people I trusted. However, they kicked me out. They said that I shamed the family and to never come back. Unfortunately, they went looking for me. So I got out. That's the reason I became mute. I had to learn sign language and everything and live on the streets for a year. This all passes through my mind when I see him. "I think we saw your buddy earlier. Jack Wilder I think his name was. Yeah, we left our mark on him." Then his face came so close to mine. I knew what he wanted. In defiance, I spit in his face. He wasn't gonna get a kiss from me. "I forgot, you can't talk anymore, right? We've seen you on the television. You are now getting famous. And who do you hang out with now? Magicians?" He laughed cruelly. "Untie her." His buddies reached behind her. I flinched at the touch. I was so nervous that the table was trembling. "Oh, my God, you mind quitting it with the 'magic' tricks. We all know it's shit." Finally, I was free. I stood up and walked around. My moment of freedom was short-lived. I was slammed into the wall by Richard and he was trying to tongue me. I had an immediate flashback of that night with him. "Oh, you can't scream this time, right? You can't talk anymore." I was starting to cry now. I had nowhere to run this time. All I had was my virginity and powers. But I soon didn't need it. There was an eerie silence in the house, and then a whole bunch of police came in with guns pointed at Richard.

"PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR! STEP AWAY FROM THE GIRL!" Richard jumped away from me and ran his ass off. But something happened. I hadn't realized that he handcuffed his hand to me, so when he ran, I had to follow. There were a lot of screams and gun shots, but I wasn't terrified. It reminded me of my life in the gangs. Every day, I surrounded by blood, screams, and violence. But by the first month passed, it was all very normal. Eventually, Richard had taught me how to use a gun. For some reason, it became my special weapon. Sooner or later, I became the official gunner. Sometimes, I would also play as the bait. Those were good times. We would spend hours on the roofs, high as kites. Then, we would talk about what we wanted to be in this world. One time, we were talking about our greatest goals. Richard wanted to be gang leader. Before I could say anything, he said that I would be his Queen. If it was anyone else, I wouldn't have minded as much, but he was implying that I would stay in the ghetto with him. Smiling and thinking that he was joking, I said,

"Yeah, right. No freaking way. The first chance I've got to leave this shit hole, I'm taking it. Hey, guess what." He didn't answer. "I got that acceptance letter from NYU. I'm getting the hell out during the fall." I thought that he would be proud of me; but instead, he screamed and tried to hit me. I ended up with a bruise on my cheek. Luckily, the others found us there and stopped him from killing me. After the effects of weed rubbed off, he apologized so many times. But that wasn't the person I saw two hours before. We couldn't be left alone, because he would try to stab me with a knife. That episode showed me how unstable Richard was. That's when I started distancing myself from him. He was fine for a few weeks. I almost completely forgave him. Then, drunk, he tried to rape me.

"Ileana, remember this place?" I looked around and saw the alley way where I was nearly gang raped. I remember looking at him with wonder and awe. "You can have all this back, only if you 'repent'." He smiled maliciously. Shaking my head, I tried to run away. However, the handcuffs were still on me. In anger, Richard grabbed me by the hair and dragged me towards me. I screamed at the top of my lungs. Tears streamed down. Then I saw a figure in the entrance of the alley. I heard his voice.

"Ruth, is that you?" It was an unfamiliar sound, but some part of me believed that he could bring me to safety. I screamed again before Richard covered my mouth. The man ran towards me and soon I could actually see his profile. He had a scruffy beard and busy eye brows and black hair. He was my father.

VVVV

When I was thirty, I had a one night stand with my neighbor's cousin. I didn't see her for about five months. She stopped me in Publix; at first, I had no bloody idea _who _she was, until she said her name. Emily Porter was a twenty year old girl, deflowered by me. She had a big belly and everything. She said that she was pregnant with my child. The first thing I thought was…what the fuck. Then, I had a vague memory of that night. Feeling guilty, I married her in my police officer uniform. I moved in with her and everything. After she was born, things fell apart. We stayed together only for two more years. Ileana grew up with going back and forth between parents. Eventually, she chose to live with her mother and to visit me one weekend a month. Emily changed as well. She remarried her co-worker and he raised her like she was his own. A little while back, I heard that Ileana got into a gang. In anger and surprise, I drove back there and yelled at Emily for being so irresponsible. She was supposed to make sure she was safe. While we were arguing, Ileana walked in, bruised and scared. I hugged her and told her that she's going to be okay. She was crying and apologizing and talking about her boyfriend Richard. She was about to go to her room when Emily screamed at her.

"_GET OUT OF MY HOUSE! MATT, THROW HER STUFF OUT!"_ Ileana was screaming and sobbing, but Emily still kicked her out. I tried to stop her and have her live with me, but the damage was done. My daughter disappeared into the night.

"Rhodes, are you with us?" Daniel stood in front of me in the hospital. Ileana was in the hospital bed with Jack by her side. My daughter…I'm sorry.

**OMG! I just got that idea like that the end. I hope y'all like it!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi! I'm so sorry for not updating but I've been so…busy with dance and life. But now I'm definitely gonna start updating. Thank you for reading and loving my story! R&R!**

Chapter 5

I watched the sleeping girl on the cot with awe. Her face was flawless not including that bruise on her cheek from her attack. Her brown hair was spread all over the pillow and she was talking in her sleep. I heard Daniel come up from behind me; I knew I was gonna to start talking. You see, the Four Horsemen had drilled me with questions I didn't want to answer. I had already relived that terrible night too many times. No need to bring that up again.

"Rhodes, can I come in?" To my surprise, it was Jack who stood behind me. I had grown to be fond of the guy; now that my daughter came into the equation, I was a little bit resistant. But just looking on his face convinced me of his honorable intentions. Nodding stiffly (and a wee bit reluctantly), I moved to the side. When I left the room and closed the door, I stopped to make a tiny crack and watched the boy. He first went to the side of her bed and sat. Then he held her hand and whispered, "Ileana, it's me, Jack." Shockingly, Ileana obeyed and smiled. Her eyes fluttered open and filled immediately with tears. The memories had come back to her way too quickly. Without another way, he made room for her and he lay next to her and held her. She kept on crying while he soothed her pain. For some reason, I felt somewhat jealous of him; but why?

I decided that I had trusted Jack enough with my daughter and left the hallway. I found myself going to the food court and guess whom was there? Emily Porter was sitting in the table with her husband Matt. In anger, I walked there and sat down at their table. She looked up and groaned.

"What are you doing here, Emily?"

"Well, as you can see, our daughter has just been attacked."

"Oh, really? Well last time I checked, you _disowned _her. Am I right?" My ex's face changed and I could see a trace of fury on her white face. Smiling, I started to push it. "Or are you just here to rub it in her face that you will NEVER forgive her?" In one fluid motion, she slapped my face. Before I could react, I felt a strong hand on my shoulder. Daniel stood there with Henley and Merrick. Henley said,

"Excuse me, but I need to introduce myself. I am Henley Reeves; this is Daniel and Merrick. We have been the ones taking care of Ileana, or Ruth, as she prefers it. I had absolutely no idea of her true situation, but I assure you. We had no intention of kicking her out. She will get an education, home, FAMILY, and a good life." Grinning, I shrugged at Emily. That's when she realized that she would never win this battle, let alone this war.

NNNNNNN

After an hour of calming down with Jack, I walked around my room. I kept trying to assure myself that I wasn't with Richard. According to Jack, he had been arrested. But I still couldn't get that memory of him out of my head. When I had tried to leave the room, he held the door. In confusion, I tried again. I started to get frustrated.

"Ileana-" He was silenced by a look. He looked at me for a second and the recognition filled his face. "Ruth, I can't let you out right now. You're still recovering from the shock." Dammit, I could tell he wouldn't back down. Closing my eyes, I backed away slowly. Using my power, Jack was pushed away from the door and out the door I went. Running through the hospital, my eyes searched for my father and mom. We needed to talk, like now.

"Ruthie, what are you doing here?" Henley stood in the entrance of the cafeteria. I didn't answer and just walked on. To my intense surprise, my parents stood around a table along with my make-shift family. "Ruth, right now, we are talking with your mother…"

"NO! I demand custody of MY DAUGHTER!"

"Emily, you are an unfit mother. What kind of person, let alone MOM, kicks out their own child?" No, they aren't gonna fight here, not without my input. In anger, I marched to the table and slammed my hand on the table. Mom stared at me in wonder. She has definitely changed in the last year. Her once youthful blonde hair looked almost grey. There were bags under her eyes, and her skin seemed clammy. She tried to reach for me, but I backed away. The memory of her kicking me out with such…cruelty pierced my mind. "See, Emily, what you did to our daughter."

"Shut up. Ileana, speak to me. Please." Didn't they know that I was mute? I looked at Henley and she gave me an apologetic look. Tears filled my eyes; my own family didn't even know I wouldn't be able to speak ever again. Taking a deep breathe, I relayed my story with my hands. Jack eventually made it down there and helped tell the story. After I was done, I took a piece of paper on the table and wrote,

_I am home. I'm not going anywhere. I'm sorry. _With that, I exited the place and walked away.

NNNNNN

It's been three months since we had that episode with her family. We've recruited at least ten more magicians; they are just random people off the streets with crazy talent. But no one has managed to surpass the power of Ruth (as she prefers to be called now). Every day, she leaves to search for talent and usually can find some semi-promising ones. Despite the success of the Eye, things are different between Ruth and I. She seems dead; there isn't that passion anymore. We also barely speak.

"Ruth and Jack, I need you guys to go on Fifth and Sixth to check out that illusionist." She was waiting by the door with a smile when we left. As we walked, we made simple small talk. Ruth was just bored; so I decided to make some action.

"Ruth, do you still talk to your mom?" That question made her stop in her tracks. She looked at me with surprise. "What? I'm not allowed to actually talk with you anymore?" She recoiled as if I slapped her. Responding, she wrote on her tablet,

_Where is all of this coming from? Why are you acting like this? _She now was playing stupid. I angrily grabbed her by the elbow and dragged her around the corner to a dilapidated wall. The bricks were almost gray and the floor was covered in debris. A box lay on the side.

"Do you remember this place?" She took a look around and shook her head. "This is the place where I met the girl I loved. She was vibrant and beautiful and…passionate. I remember standing in that crowd watching that girl just fly all over the place with the music. Leaves would fall around like confetti; it was just like magic. Do you know who that girl was?" Ruth was trembling so much at that moment. I could hear sobs racking her body. "That was _you_! At least before this…person came in. Right now, when I look at you, all I see is a stranger." In one fluid motion, she ran up to me and slapped me hard. While I was trying to recover, what she did completely shocked me. She opened her mouth and in a scraggly voice, she said slowly,

"You. Will. Never. Understand." Before I could speak, she ran away from me.

**Sorry for not updating! I've been so busy and I'm now restarting my fanfiction writing. I've had a lot of writer's block and I think this turned out okay. Please read and review! **


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